Time
by MariellaMiracle
Summary: The more time you spend with people, the more time it'll take to heal if they ever leave you. The more time you take to heal, the less time you'll have to meet other people. Time runs out for everyone, but will it run out for a lively group of warriors on their journey?
1. Chapter 1

_Hi there! This my first Elsword story, and it's gonna be pretty different from all of my other stuff, though I doubt any of you have read those things haha. Well anyways, this will probably be a long-term series. Which means I'll need some great motivation to keep this thing going! If you guys could send me your reviews, favorite, and follow, that'd really help me out! I know most Elsword stories specify all of the characters ages and classes beforehand, but I'm just gonna keep them all in their first classes for the time being. Youngest age starts at 14, and the oldest will probably be 18. I'm not entirely sure though, do you guys feel like knowing their ages would help you?_

 _Some of the events in the beginning of the story will be mostly the same, but it'll start to drift as things get started. Well anyways, here we go._

 **Chapter 1**

Stronger. Stronger. Stronger. Continuing his training session, the young red-haired boy breathed heavily deep inside the forest. Strength was his current goal, promising himself he'd become as strong as his family members. Specifically his father and his older sister. He had to become stronger! He had been somewhat depressed ever since his sister left to assist their father in battle. He felt lonely, sometimes even scared. He felt terribly weak in comparison to his family members. It took him many days to find the reasons to continue training. He had finally realized that there was no way he'd ever become as powerful as them if he just sat around moping all day long. And so now, he's been training as hard as ever.

Elsword had been distracted by his training, when a couple of bandits were blocking his path in the forest. He was awfully confused and slightly irritated. All of the forest was available to everyone, so why weren't they letting him through? Well, no one ever pegged him as a peaceful guy. He started destroying the blockade placed in front of him by the bandits, destroying the large pieces of wood to bits. The bandits scattered, leaving Elsword with a strange demon. But nevermind that, he was stealing the El Shard! Elsword had to stop him!

"Hey!" he yelled at the demon, "That doesn't belong to you!" He shouted, beginning to attack the demon. Meanwhile, Elsword hadn't even noticed two other bandits attacking the demon. The demon ignored the boy, and quickly disposed of the bandits. He began mumbling to himself, continuing to ignore the boy's futile attacks. That is, until he felt pain. Somehow, the red-haired warrior was resonating with the El Shard! The demon by the name of Berthe, growled towards the boy. He felt sudden waves of magic, hitting him from the other side. He needed to retreat. He could easily defeat these children, but with the boy having a strange resonance with the El Shard, anything could happen. He couldn't risk it.

Elsword yelled towards the demon as it quickly retreated, leaving him there, confused. He mumbled to himself, annoyed that the demon was able to escape.

"You're so lucky I was here, or you would've been toast!" Came a female's voice from a few feet away. Elsword, however, hardly noticed the purple-haired girl. "Hey! I saved your life! I deserve a thanks!" She smirked, confidently putting her hands on her hips, waiting for the red-haired boy to thank her, and quite possibly beg her for forgiveness. However, he just continued to mumble to himself, talking about the El Shard. She stared at him, wondering what this boy's problem was.

After Elsword had stopped mumbling, he looked up to see what looked like a magic user in front of him. He gasped, jumping back away from the girl and then glaring at her, "Hey! If you're to take the El Shard, I won't let you! Back off!" He said, holding his weapon defensively in front of himself.

"You.. Are the dumbest boy I have ever met! I've been talking to you for quite literally the past 5 minutes while you were in la la land! And before that, i saved your damn life! Show some appreciation! Jerk!"

"Excuse me?! I don't know who spit in your cereal but take a chill pill! I'm here trying to protect the El Shard and all of the sudden this brat comes up to me claiming I owe her!" He crossed his arms, No way he was going to let some random girl speak to him that way. He was gonna be a great warrior someday!

"Brat?! You're the brat here! If you're protecting the El Shard so well, then why was it even stolen in the first place?"

"It wasn't stolen! I have it right here- Wha?!" Elsword began frantically looking for the El Shard. He swore he just had it! Where did it go? The girl narrowed her eyes,

"You complete idiot! How could you not notice it being taken?!"

"I don't see you doing anything to help!"

"I saved your life!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"ENOUGH!"

Elsword and the girl both turned their heads in the direction of the gentle, yet loud voice that shouted to them. An elven girl stepped towards them, gorgeous long hair hanging by her sides, slightly swaying with the wind. They were both captivated by her beauty for a moment, before realizing she was actually quite angry looking. They tensed a bit, slightly afraid of this woman. She began speaking to them,

"A bandit just escaped with the El Shard!"

"WHAT?!" The two asked in unison. Their eyes followed the girl's finger, which was pointing towards Ruben village. They all frowned, and ran off in the direction of the village.

As the trio entered Ruben, they quickly scanned the area for any bandits. They didn't see any, and ran into Lowe, Ruben's drillmaster. Elsword hurriedly got Lowe's attention, the two girls behind him,

"Hey Lowe! Did a bandit just pass through here?!"

"His name is Banthus!" The elf quickly added, as she had encountered him in the forest, and he had given her his name. Told her to remember it, as it'd be famous one day. Lowe began replying to Elsword,

"Yes. Banthus just passed through here moments before. I don't trust him, and so I was going to ask him what he was up to, but he was gone before I got the chance."

"Crap! We gotta find him! Quickly! He's got the El Shard!" Elsword said frantically, looking around once more, just to double check he wasn't somewhere nearby. Lowe's eyes widened in shock, and a bit of panic,

"You're joking! We need to find him immediately! I'll gather everyone, the three of you, keep looking for him! And hurry!" Lowe then hurried off in another direction, gathering the people of the village to help them search for Banthus.

The three began looking around Ruben, thinking their hardest of where the bandit would go. But alas, they couldn't think of anything, and there was no sight of Banthus anywhere. The magician gave out a long sigh of annoyance,

"If this brat hadn't distracted me, I would've stopped him!"

"Excuse me? You're the one who distracted me!"

"Enough! Neither of you are at fault, so please focus on finding Banthus instead of blaming each other! You're both acting like children." The elf interrupted them, quite tired of hearing them argue. They both crossed their arms and turned away from each other, continuing the search.

After looking around for an hour, they returned to Ruben village and approached Lowe,

"Has anyone spotted him?" Elsword asked.

"One moment." He said as a villager approached him and pulled him to the side. The two began speaking and Lowe gave a confident nod to the villager and hurried back to the group, "They have! They said they spotted Banthus in Lake Noahs!"

Elsword nodded and ran off towards Lake Noahs, followed by the two girls. The magician looked towards the elf, and then up ahead to Elsword,

"I'm Aisha by the way! Very intelligent, clever, and adorable magician!" She said proudly. The elven girl smiled while continuing to run towards Lake Noahs,

"I am Rena."

"Elsword."

The trio finally made it to Lake Noahs, and noticed a couple of bandits lurking around. Aisha nodded slowly,

"Alright, let's formulate a plan and we should able to have the element of surprise-"

"Hey! Give back the El Shard!" Elsword shouting, running straight towards them without any plan but his power. Aisha began grumbling and thought she heard Rena give out a small giggle. The two followed Elsword and began attacking the bandits. While Elsword took the front lines, cutting through bandits that approached him, Aisha and Rena attacked from afar. Whenever an enemy approached the girls, Rena quickly dealt with them with her quick and powerful kicks. Aisha was quite impressed.

The magician noticed a page floating in the air and quickly jumped to grab it. The page had directions written on it, seemingly by Banthus to the other bandits. She gasped with shock, "They've been planning to steal the El Shard for a long time!" She began repeating what the page said, "Finally, after years of preparing, we can finally complete our plan to steal the El Shard." She frowned, while Elsword finished off the last bandit and ran over to her, nearly colliding into her. He ripped the paper from her hands and began reading it himself,

"Hey!" She glared at him. Elsword ignored her and glared at the page, "We've gotta get this back to the village and show Lowe!" He said and ran off, back in the direction of Ruben.

"Are you kidding me?" Aisha sighed and rolled her eyes at him, running after him. Rena watched Aisha follow after Elsword and thought for a long moment. Maybe she didn't have to complete her mission alone. Even if those two don't get along, she could tell they were both good people. That would be lovely to have a team, all working together. Maybe with different goals, but they could all help each other out. Yeah... That'd be wonderful. Rena smiled softly to herself and hurried back towards Ruben.

Back at Ruben, Elsword quickly ran over to Lowe, with Aisha right behind him, nearly knocking him over as she collided into his back,

"Watch it!"

"You should've slowed down before you stopped!" Aisha argued back with him. Lowe frowned,

"Did you find Banthus?" He asked.

"No... But we found this!"

Aisha scoffed, "And by we, he means me."

"Shut it!" Elsword dismissed her as Lowe began reading over the page. Aisha began fuming. What was with this kid? She was so angry. All she wanted was to get her magic back, and instead, she's stuck arguing with this idiotic boy.

"Make me!" She spat her tongue at him.

"You're lucky you helped me or I'd-"

He was interrupted by Rena smacking the two of them on the back of the head, "Enough!"

Lowe looked up from the paper and frowned, his face dark, "Please, notify Hagus of what's going on. I need to... think of a plan." Lowe frowned and walked away from them, going inside of a tent. Elsword frowned as Lowe walked away. The guy was usually super cheerful, Elsword didn't like seeing him that way. Lowe had helped Elsword in his training a lot. It's thanks to Lowe that he is as strong as he is today.

 _Don't worry Lowe... We'll get the El Shard back. I promise._

Elsword hurried over to the village chief, Hagus. Hagus had also watched over Elsword since he has been in Ruben. Lowe and Hagus had always made sure to watch over Elsword and his older sister when their father was away. Elsword would never admit it, but he really looked up to Hagus and Lowe. Although he usually teased Hagus and always told Lowe he'd become stronger than him one day, they were his biggest inspirations next to his father and his sister.

"Hagus! Hagus!" He shouted towards the older man. Hagus raised an eyebrow to the young boy,

"What is it Elsword?"

"It's the El Shard. It's been stolen!"

"What?! How on earth did that happen?"

"Banthus stole it." Rena told him as she and Aisha approached the two males, "We tried to stop him, but we failed. We have a bit of information, but not enough to locate him unfortunately."

Hagus took the information in and took a deep breathe, "Alright, stay calm everyone. There may be some of his bandits hiding in the forest. We'll have the villagers keep a close eye on the areas around the village. Could you three please check the forest?"

Elsword nodded, "Yeah! We'll go."

"Thank you. Be safe, please." He nodded towards Elsword and the red-haired boy returned the gesture. He motioned for Aisha and Rena to follow him as he headed towards the forest. The three of them entered the forest, in search of Banthus. They easily handled the monsters that stood in their path, Elsword and Aisha ended up arguing about which one of them destroyed a monster quicker, and Rena immediately stopped them.

They noticed someone inside the forest, and Rena and Aisha had to hold Elsword back from running straight to them. They slowly approached the person, and realized it was Banthus. Elsword and Aisha gasped, giving away their position by mistake. Banthus turned to face them with a smirk, "You shouldn't have shown up. The El Shard is mine now." he said before beginning an attack on the trio.

Rena quickly cartwheeled out of harm's way, while Aisha shoved Elsword out of the way. Banthus turned and began attacking the two, while Rena attempted to hit him with her arrows from behind. Banthus knocked Aisha down, causing her to hit her head on the ground. He raised his weapon to strike her, but Elsword quickly parried the blow with his own sword, and shoved him backwards, right into Rena's vicious kick. Banthus began to realize he was heavily outnumbered, but smirked. Suddenly, a giant phoru emerged from the trees, releasing a loud roar. Elsword, Aisha, and Rena all stood in shock for a moment, and then realized it was going to attack. They began dodging the Phoru's attack.

"I thought Phoru's were supposed to be chill creatures!" Elsword said, frowning.

"Apparently not this one!" Aisha said, sending a wave of fireballs at the beast. The beast growled, and charged towards Elsword, sending him flying into the air, and crashing down hard. This however, gave Rena an opening to shoot the beast with one of her arrows. Aisha quickly followed up Rena's attack with another wave of fireballs, causing the beast to stagger. Elsword stood up slowly, looking at the beast.

"Now's my chance!" He said and ran towards the beast, full speed ahead. He raised his sword and shouted, "Mega Slash!" Elsword slashed the giant white phoru with his weapon, causing the creature to finally fall over. The creature whimpered slightly, and scurried off into the forest quickly. The trio frowned slightly, and began to head back to Ruben, completely exhausted.

One they returned to Ruben, Hagus hurried his way to them, "Did you retrieve the El Shard?" He asked worriedly, and by the looks of them, they failed. He still had some hope though.

"Well, we found Banthus..." Aisha started, and Hagus nodded, eager to hear the rest. Elsword continued,

"But he got away! All thanks to this giant phoru. It attacked us and Banthus escaped." Elsword sighed, followed by a nod from Hagus. Hagus looked at the crew,

"You all look exhausted. Let's continue the hunt for Banthus in the morning. Make sure to get a good rest, I want you up right when the sun rises." He looked towards Aisha and Rena, "I have a room at the inn that the two of you can share for the time being. I won't ask you to continue to help us, but it'd be greatly appreciated."

"I'd love to continue to help you sir. Banthus deserves to be caught immediately." Rena said, a soft smile painting her face. Aisha had a slightly different expression, filled with exhaustion and somewhat worry,

"I will also continue to help. Catching Banthus and retrieving the El Shard can only be completed with a talented mage such as myself. Even if it means I have to work with El-Brat." She crossed her arms when she mentioned Elsword, and he glared at her, grumbling to himself. Hagus chuckled,

"Very well then! A large breakfast will be prepared for you in the morning! Get some rest until then!"

The three nodded, and headed off in different directions. The girls walked towards the inn, while Elsword returned to his home, followed by Lowe. Elsword sensed Lowe behind him, and left the door open for him. Lowe entered Elsword's home and they both sat on the chairs in the kitchen. Lowe scrunched up his nose,

"Still a complete mess in here huh?"

"Yeah... I've gotta focus on training, not dumb stuff like cleaning..." Elsword grumbled, grabbing a snack from the cabinets in the kitchen. Lowe gave a soft sigh in response,

"You know, if you ever want to find a wife, you can't be such a slob."

"Wife? I don't need a wife anytime soon."

"Yeah, I doubt you'll find one the way you are now." Lowe said with a chuckle.

"Hey! Rude. I'm sure I'll find one when I'm the strongest warrior in the land. And I don't see you with any girlfriend!"

"Hey now, I've got my hands too full with you, ya little brat." He chuckled and ruffled Elsword's hair. Elsword shook his head,

"Hey!" He pushed Lowe's hand away with a cheerful grin, "You're never gonna get a lady acting like that old man."

"I'm not that old!" Lowe and Elsword laughed in unison, cheerfully. They spent a lot of nights like this. Lowe was quite a lonely knight, and so the company of Elsword was something he didn't know he needed. He saw a lot of himself in the young warrior. He wanted for nothing more than Elsword to grow up healthy, strong, and kind. He would give anything for Elsword to find a happy ending. He smiled softly towards the boy and stood up, "Tomorrow, I'm going with you three. I'll teach you how a captain acts, alright? I'd like to see you lead your own group one day. But for now, let me show you the ropes, kay? And I want to make sure none of you get hurt."

"We'd be fine. But... Sure. " He grinned at Lowe, and the older knight nodded. Elsword was excited that Lowe was coming. He knew how experienced he was, and he could learn a lot from that.

"Get some rest kiddo." Lowe patted his head softly, and headed towards the door.

Aisha and Rena entered the room at the inn, both of them taking a long shower before collapsing onto their beds. Aisha yawned loudly and pulled a book from her bag, reading it while laying on her side. Rena began brushing her long hair and looked towards Aisha,

"What are you reading?" She asked her with a gentle voice. This surprised Aisha a bit, as usually Rena had been yelling at them.

"It's a book about the El Shard... I'm getting as much information as I can on it. That way I can get my magic back someday. It'll be real soon too. I'm gonna get it back no matter what."

"You lost your magic?"

"Yeah... It got taken away from me. But don't worry! I'm still a fantastic magician." She grinned.

"Don't worry, I've seen what you can do. You're certainly quite talented Aisha."

"Why, thank you. You're not too bad yourself!"

Rena giggled softly, and finished brushing through her hair. She tilted her head while looking at Aisha and asked,

"May I brush your hair?" She asked. Aisha was taken off guard,

"Oh...um, sure." She closed her book and set it on the side table near her. "I hope it's not too tangled or anything..." She said, her cheeks slightly pink. Rena got off of her own bed and sat behind Aisha with her hairbrush,

"Don't worry, I'll be gentle." She gave her a reassuring smile before beginning to run the brush through Aisha's purple locks. Aisha was a bit tense, but started to relax once Rena began peacefully humming. She had never really had friends, and certainly no 'girl time'. So this was really nice for her. She relaxed so much that she actually fell asleep. Rena was shocked for a moment when Aisha leaned against her, sleeping softly. Rena laid her down gently and placed the covers over her. "Goodnight Aisha."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** _I haven't got much to say here this time, but here we go. I've decided that the highest age will actually probably go somewhere into the early 20's. And the story seems very light-hearted right now, but don't worry, it'll get much darker. I won't say much about that though, hehe. I will be responding to almost every review in the bottom! Since it's the beginning of the story, your review will probably make it here since there aren't many reviews to respond to. Well anyways, enjoy! Remember to leave your feedback and follow!_

 **Time** : Chapter 2

At the morning of the next day, the trio of heroes were sitting around a table, eating breakfast prepared for them. Rena had already finished her food, while Aisha was still eating along with Elsword. Elsword was destroying the meal, avoiding the vegetables. Aisha was trying to eat, but food from Elsword kept flying into her face, making her quite irritated. They continued arguing back and forth, as usual. Rena sighed softly, rubbing her head. They argued so much, how did they have the energy for it? Lowe took a seat next to Rena and chuckled at the bickering between Elsword and Aisha,

"Don't worry too much about that. He likes bickering with everyone. Keeps him energized and fiery. I'm sure he doesn't dislike Aisha, but they're both very proud and straight-forward. That gives him competition, and he loves it." Lowe explained to her, a soft smile across his face. Rena nodded slowly as he talked and she smiled as well,

"Ah, I see... Even so, it's quite annoying for them to constantly argue this way. They're arguing so fiercely they can't even hear us right now. I'm afraid I'm going to have to interrupt them sometimes."

"I understand. They are a bit... overboard..." Lowe chuckled awkwardly watching the two fling food at each other. "Alright, you two that's enough!" Lowe's gentle voice suddenly become louder and the two stopped arguing and mumbled under their breath. "Sheesh..."

Lowe leaned back in his seat, recalling the times Elsword and flung food at him as well.

 _Lowe had decided to visit Elsword the day his sister left to assist their father in battle. He knew Elsword was going to be quite upset, and he wanted to make sure that he was alright. Or at least, try to cheer him up a bit. He knocked on the red-haired boy's door, patiently waiting for him to answer it. When he didn't, Lowe felt sort of worried. He knocked once more, and a small voice came from inside the door._

 _"Go away..."_

 _His heart broke. This poor kid probably felt so sad right now._

 _"It's just me, Lowe. I've brought you some gifts, so if you could open the door..."_

 _"Just leave them on the step..."_

 _Lowe let out a soft sigh, he remembered when he had been stubborn in his young age as well. Just had to be strong. As he grew up, Lowe learned that it was okay to be weak in front of others. In fact, it was helpful. To confide in others and share your emotions. It was quite beautiful actually. To be able to trust someone so much that you can convey your emotions to them. And they'll make you feel better. Or, maybe sometimes they won't. But they were there. And they genuinely cared for you. Lowe just hoped that Elsword knew he was there for him. And he wouldn't give up. He knocked on the door once more,_

 _"Come on Elsword... I'd really can't leave these on the step... They'll go bad. Or someone could take them."_

 _"No!"_

 _"Elsword..."_

 _The door opened suddenly, but only for Elsword to fling food into Lowe's face, and then the door slammed shut, and locked again. Lowe sighed and wiped the food from his face,_

 _"I promise I won't give you a lecture. I actually...wanted to share a story with you. It's pretty cool. I defeated a monster while blindfolded. Let me in so I can tell you about it, okay?"_

 _There was a long silence on the other side of the door, before it slowly unlocked and creaked open, revealing Elsword. Lowe sighed of relief, and stepped into Elsword's home with a soft smile. He placed the gift basket on the table, which was filled with some of the boy's favorite treats and meals. Along with a couple new pairs of clothes. Elsword sat on the floor, quietly thanking him for the gift and then patiently waiting for Lowe's story. Lowe sat himself down at one of the chairs and patted Elsword's head,_

 _"You ready kiddo?"_

 _Elsword nodded, a bit excitedly. Despite being majorly upset that his sister had to leave, he always loved Lowe's battle stories. They inspired him so much, and that's something he really needed right now. Any kind of inspiration, or motivation. As Lowe began to tell his story, Elsword perked up, listening intently. It was one of the only times where he would actually quiet down and pay attention._

Lowe was suddenly pulled from his memory as Hagus pulled up a chair next to him.

"Ah, hello chief."

Hagus gave him a quick nod and turned his attention to the others, "We've had some scouts search for the forest for Banthus. It seems they've spotted some bandits around the Forest Ruins. Once you finish your meals, please hurry there. Banthus could be nearby. Be safe and careful, please." The chief said, and got up from the chair, exiting the room.

Aisha took one more bite of her meal and then started dragging Elsword away from the table, "Alright, let's go!" She ran out of the building, and headed towards the forest. Lowe and Rena looked at each other momentarily, and then hurriedly followed them. Elsword whined as he was dragged,

"No! My food! I wasn't done!"

And so, the four of them walked through Ruben forest. Aisha looked around curiously and started walking next to Lowe,

"So there's ruins in this forest?"

"Oh yes! They're quite interesting actually."

Elsword groaned as the two started talking about something that was completely boring to him. He didn't really care too much for the ruins. They were just ruins after all... He was more interested in... That! He grinned and attacked one of the monsters nearby. Lowe and Aisha simply continued walking and talking, ignoring Elsword's yelling and attacking. Rena kept her eye on him, just in case.

Elsword returned to the group as they walked deeper into the forest. Lowe began walking quieter and slower and began whispering to them,

"All right, everyone... Pay attention." He said, motioning for them to slow down and listen, "That over there is a Fairy Guardian. It's a pretty powerful creature, so let's not wake it okay? These guys are almost always sleeping. We can just walk right by it, all right? No problem..." He said, keeping his voice low. Aisha and Rena gave a quick nod, beginning to walk slowly.

Unfortunately, Elsword hadn't been listening to Lowe at all. He ran straight towards the monster, shouting at it,

"Wake up monster! It's battle time!" He grinned, raising his sword to attack, but the monster immediately awoke and roared loudly, knocking Elsword backwards with a strong punch. Lowe frowned,

"Elsword! The one thing I told you not to do..." He sighed softly and grabbed his sword, "Guess we've got no choice."

"That complete idiot..." Aisha rolled her eyes and prepared her wand, "Time to clean up your mess, El-Brat!"

"Shut it! I can take this thing!"

"Not as well as I can!" Aisha grinned and ran towards Elsword, using his head as a boost, lifting herself into the air and sending down a chain of fireballs at the Fairy Guardian. She then landed beside the creature and spun, "Gust Storm!" She shouted into the air, as large waves of fire surrounded her and the enemy was thrown into a tree, burnt from the intense flames. Elsword grumbled, but he was really impressed. She was annoying as hell, but... pretty powerful. He crossed his arms as Lowe finished off the creature.

"Let's not do that again, alright?" Lowe said sheepishly.

"I thought you said that they were supposed to be quite powerful creatures. But that thing was super easy to take care of!" Aisha crossed her arms, narrowing her eyes.

"Well... Do you think you have enough energy to take on another one?" Lowe asked, staring sternly at Aisha. The magician thought for a long moment. She had used quite a bit of energy... If she hadn't used such powerful magic, it probably would've taken a lot longer to destroy it. And now she was rather low on energy. She sighed softly, defeated,

"I-...No..."

Elsword burst into laughter at Aisha, holding his stomach and laughing loudly, his voice echoing through the forest. Tears welled in his eyes. It wasn't really that funny, but he wanted to rub it in. Aisha crossed her arms and huffed, turning away from the red-head. She was so done with him. He's lucky she didn't have her magic, or she would've annihilated him by now. In fact, all of the monsters in the forest were lucky! They would've been destroyed instantly with her previous magic. Aisha thought to herself.

Elsword's childish laughter attracted more monsters towards them and Rena sighed,

"You two need to quit that..."

The four of them quickly dealt with the enemies that approached them. While continuing deeper into the forest, Lowe began thinking of the memory he wasn't able to finish earlier.

 _"Alright, so it all started when I was given this partner for a mission. She was... Well, she was pretty annoying. Always saying she knew how things should be done, and that I should just follow her lead. I was really young back then, and I thought I could handle things pretty easily. But she always insisted that I was wrong, and we clashed a lot. It usually ended up in us having to work a lot harder than necessary, because we both were positive that we were doing the right thing." He chuckled, "I was almost always wrong though. Almost always."_

 _Elsword snickered a little. he loved hearing about Lowe's past mistakes. So that he could make fun of him of course, but also because it made Elsword realize that even the most powerful warriors started off small. They all made mistakes, just like the ones Elsword's making sometimes. It made him feel a lot better._

 _"I didn't trust her. I was pretty stubborn back then, it's a little embarrassing actually. So anyways, one day she told me that I needed to trust her more. She knew how to defeat the very powerful beast we were facing on our mission. I said no... We ran into some trouble, and she saved my life. But after that, she was way to hurt to keep going. Especially against a beast of that power. I told her she couldn't go on, and to my surprise, she actually agreed. She gave me a magical earpiece, and told me she'd guide me through the battle. I was actually really terrified... She said that with her guidance, I'd be able to do it blindfolded. I didn't really want to, but I wore it anyway. At least I couldn't see that scary monster." He laughed, "She guided me through the battle, and.. I won." Lowe smiled softly, with a hint of sadness inside his smile. He thought for another moment, and his eyes became distant and traveled to the floor, "Um, so I came back to her, and um... She was asleep! Yeah." He chuckled nervously, "Silly girl fell asleep while I was gone. How lazy is that?" He asked, a sad grin across his face._

 _When he looked up, Elsword was fast asleep on the floor. He must've fallen asleep... Lowe gently lifted him from the floor and placed him onto his bed. He sat on one of Elsword's chairs and took a large drink of water. He'd never tell Elsword the rest of the story. Or what actually happened. He hated talking about it. The last words his partner spoke were 'Protect my daughter.' He would then hurry back to her, only find that it was too late. She succumbed to her injuries. Protect her daughter... He didn't know she had a daughter. She was barely 18, how did she have a child that early? And how was Lowe to find her? He tried his hardest, but his partner hardly ever talked about her past. He tried and tried, but could never find the young girl. Lowe is constantly trying to find information on her, but it's been so many years. The poor girl was left alone, motherless. Who knew if she had a father? Lowe hated how useless he felt..._

"Lowe?"

Lowe looked up, noticing Elsword speaking his name,

"Yes?"

"Now really isn't the time to be a space cadet. You're supposed to be the leader, remember? If you keep spacing out like that, I'm gonna have to take over the leadership role." He grinned brightly at the older soldier. Lowe nodded,

"You're right, sorry." He looked at their surroundings, "We're almost there."

Along the way, the group had been shocked at the amount of violent phorus that they had encountered. Usually phorus were peaceful enough that some people had even owned them as pets. But these ones were carrying around weapons, and stealing things! Lowe had begun to suspect that the local troublemaker William, who was also a phoru, may have something to do with this. William was always going around causing trouble for people, but he was hoping that the large phoru wasn't involved with Banthus and his bandits.

The group made it to the ruins, and noticed William, surrounded by a few other phorus, whispering quietly to them. Rena glared towards them,

"He's telling them to steal some things from the ruins!"

Elsword ran towards them with anger, "Hey!"

"You know what?" Aisha began talking as Elsword ran towards the enemies, "I'm not even going to strategize beforehand anymore. Someone likes to ruin our plans, so whatever. Apparently I'm just wasting time!" She said in annoyance and headed into the battle. Rena and Lowe followed them quickly.

Battling against William was rather easy with the four of them teaming up. Nobody got seriously hurt, but Lowe expected that. William was only a troublemaker, not a villain. However, thanks to Elsword and Aisha accidentally colliding in the midst of battle, the large phoru ended up escaping. Of course, this caused the two to begin arguing, as usual. Rena quickly pulled them apart and gave them both a huge slap of the back of the head,

"You two! Cut it out!"

Rena immediately turned on her heel and walked away from the group. She almost couldn't believe she thinking about joining them officially. They were completely immature, and incredibly reckless. They weren't nearly serious enough, they treated this like it was a game! Rena was entrusted with a very serious mission. She needed to retrieve the El Shard and make sure it was never to be in the wrong hands again. Besides... She was meant to do this mission alone anyways. The elf stopped walking and began wiping the tears away from her eyes. She couldn't believe she was crying right now. She didn't have time for this, she needed to pull herself together and complete her mission. She sniffled and wiped her teary eyes when sudden movement in the forest frightened her and she gasped, a black-haired man emerging from the trees.

The man noticed her and his cold eyes suddenly widened, and then softened,

"Seris...?"

Rena was shocked momentarily. This man looked quite emotionless until he noticed her. Did he think she was someone else? Rena realized her eyes were probably all puffy and red and she felt her cheeks heat up a bit,

"Um, n-no..."

The man's face tensed, and he backed away from the elven girl, shaking his head. He muttered something that sounded like 'Of course not, idiot...' to himself and disappeared into the forest again. Rena watched the man leave curiously, and then she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around quickly, and there was Lowe.

"Hey, you all right Rena?" He asked, his voice soft as usual.

"I'm alright... Sorry about that. I suppose I can be a little immature at times as well. I'm afraid returning the El Shard to where it belongs is awfully important to me. I believe I am capable of completing this mission on my own, so if you will leave it to me, I promise I will not fail."

Lowe looked at Rena, shocked for a moment and then chuckled softly,

"Well, I'm sure you could if you really put your mind to it. But, you never know what Banthus has planned. You could fall into a trap and since you're all alone, you'd have no way to get rescued. We'll deal with the two of them. We'll teach Elsword how to um... not run straight into the fire. And then we'll force them to get along. At least during battle. There's no reason for you to do this alone. The more the merrier right? It'll be much easier to get the El Shard back if we're all working together."

Much to Rena's dismay, the tears returned to her eyes and she suddenly pulled Lowe into a hug. He smiled softly and patted her back, while Elsword and Aisha watched from behind a tree.

"Thank you..." Rena whispered softly.

The four finally returned to Ruben, and Aisha and Elsword were shockingly quiet for most of the trip. Aisha had mistakenly tripped Elsword and he almost yelled at her, but he held himself back. For Rena's sake. He didn't know arguing with Aisha would make Rena cry. Girls are so confusing, he thought to himself as they all walked through the village towards Hagus.

Rena walked towards the inn to take a refreshing shower, while Aisha followed her. Elsword left the explaining to Lowe and headed straight towards the nearest cafe, ready for another meal similar to the one he had this morning. He entered the cafe with a wide grin, and sat down at a table loudly. One of the waitresses, who also owned her own small shop in town, approached his table.

"May I take your or-"

"Yes you may!" Elsword began with a booming voice, "I want the same thing I had this morning! But double it! Hold back on the vegetables this time though!" He demanded, laughing obnoxiously. The waitress, who was named Ann, rolled her eyes in annoyance. She pulled a spatula from her pocket and wacked him right across the face with it,

"Excuse you!" She yelled as she began continuously beating him with the spatula, "You will ask nicely or you will receive nothing!"

Lowe entered the building after he had finished explaining the situation to Hagus. He looked at the scene unfolding in front of himself and simply sighed. He ordered a beer and Elsword perked up,

"I want one!"

"You're too young!" Lowe replied, exasperated. He had the feeling that the next few days would be just as, if not more hectic than this one. ...

 **Review Time!**

 **LucasTheCookie** _said_

" _So u wanna do a Long story?  
Great, I was waiting for a Long Story again!  
I like It so far, Especially that Elsword and Lowe have some Kind of Bond to each other.  
Would like to See more :p"_

 **Yes! I've never actually wrote and stuck to a series, so hopefully this one will last. I think as long as I stay motivated and consistent, it can be a pretty long series! My current goal is at least 50 chapters. I'm sure it'll surpass that amount as time goes on though.**

 **Curiously A Theory** _said_

"Wow~ lovely chapter, I like your writing style"

 **Thanks! I hope you continue to read. I see many writers writing in a certain character's 'point of view' but that's not really my style. So I hope I can convey their thoughts alright without going into their perspective. You may see their thoughts sometimes, but I will probably rarely go into their point of view. Thank you for reviewing!**

 **Well, that's it for the reviews! I hope everyone enjoys! Send a review and follow, I'd really appreciate it!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** _Hello there reader! Um, currently I seem to be getting a cold, and so chapters may slow down. I know there isn't many chapters yet, but I was trying to stay active in uploading them. Also let me know what you guys think about the length. Are they long enough?_

 _Don't forget to follow, favorite, and send a review! It's extremely appreciated. It keeps me motivated to continue the story._

 **Chapter 3**

Lowe and Rena stood, side by side, both of their arms crossed. They were both staring at the other members of their group, Elsword and Aisha, who were face to face, their arms crossed as well. Elsword turned away from Aisha and looked at the other two,

"Why are we doing this?"

"We are doing exercises to help you two get along." Lowe answered. Elsword scoffed,

"I don't see how this is helping."

"We're trying to force the two of you to stare at each other for as long as you can without insulting each other." Lowe let out a soft sigh while Rena giggled a bit, "So far, you've both failed miserably. Aisha insulted you after 4 seconds, and you insulted her after 5."

"Ha! I beat you!" Elsword smirked, poking Aisha roughly in the shoulder. She glared at him,

"By one second! And it wasn't even a competition!"

"Stop!" Rena and Lowe said at the same time. Both of them rubbed their foreheads in annoyance. There has got to be a better way to make them get along than this. They both thought their hardest, desperately trying to make Aisha and Elsword get along. They both collapsed and started whining,

"We've already tried everything!" They said in unison.

Elsword and Aisha walked to the side and looked at each other. Aisha took a deep breath and crossed her arms, beginning to whisper,

"Okay look, I hate you with a burning passion-"

"Burning is my thing!"

"Anyways! As much as I dislike you, they won't let us continue with the mission until we're getting along. So in order to get my magic- I mean... The El Shard back, we need to at least pretend that we're buddies, or the El is toast."

Elsword stared at her for a long moment, making her feel slightly awkward. He continued staring and she began blushing,

"What is it? Stop staring!"

"You..."

"I what?"

"You have a..." He began leaning towards her, causing her to instinctively lean away, but there was a tree behind her. Her back hit the tree and she couldn't back away anymore. He was face to face with her when he suddenly looked down,

"You have a really small chest!" He started laughing, his voice echoing throughout the area. Aisha's face turned cherry red and she began fuming with anger. Lowe and Rena finally noticed the pair acting strangely and looked up, to see Aisha nearly going to burst with anger. They looked at each other, gulping with worry, when suddenly Aisha smiled sweetly,

"W-Why, thank you Elsword..." She chuckled nervously, clenching her fists. He was so going to get it once they got the El Shard back, she thought to herself. Unfortunately, Elsword had been paying no attention at all to Aisha's words from before, and so her sudden kindness was rather odd, and he was a bit creeped out. Elsword slowly backed away from her,

"Alright weirdo... You're welcome? But it's not a good thing so..."

"You're so kind." She grinned to him, making him give a disgusted look. Elsword walked away from her and back towards Lowe and Rena, sitting down next to the two. He opened his mouth to speak until he heard Aisha humming happily in the background. He looked towards her, watching her skip around, smiling brightly at the flowers growing. He shivered and looked at the ground. What is happening? He questioned to himself.

"What's the matter Elsword?" Lowe asked, sitting up properly and looking at the boy,

"Aisha's acting strange..."

"Really? She seems the same to me..."

Bull. Elsword rolled his eyes at him,

"You're a liar! That's it. I'm done here, let's continue the mission. If we get the mission done faster, we won't have to even see each other anymore. Plus... I want to get away from her even more now that she's acting weird..."

"Alright, fine..." Lowe sighed softly and stood up, "Let's go everyone."

The crew gathered, and began headed towards Lake Noahs. Apparently there were bandits under William's command lurking there.

They entered the lake area, and as they thought, there were bandits. Some of them were phorus as well. They battled the creatures, taking back some of the items that they had stolen from the ruins as well. The group returned to Ruben once again, and Lowe walked off somewhere. The others hardly noticed and notified Hagus of their success. Ann approached them and thanked them as well. Apparently she loved the Forest Ruins quite a lot and was glad the precious relics were safe again.

Elsword yawned and rubbed his tummy, "Well, it's about time I had another meal." He chuckled loudly and Rena laughed sheepishly. But suddenly, Aisha was grabbed by a masked stranger, who immediately ran off into the forest with the purple-haired magician. Rena gasped,

"Aisha!" She grabbed her bow and started running in the direction the stranger ran. She looked back at Elsword and frowned, "Come on! We need to save Aisha!" She said, motioning him to go. Elsword began walking in the other direction. Rena's heart sank and she became angry, "Elsword! I know you two don't get along, but you can't just let her get taken! That kidnapper could do anything to her!"

Elsword simply continued walking. That is, until he grabbed his sword that was leaning against the wall and turned around,

"Let's go!" he shouted and ran off into the forest where the stranger had gone. The two began looking through the forest, looking for a trail, any sign of where they could have gone. They finally noticed the stranger running through the trees and began following him. Rena and Elsword stopped running, and Rena lifted Elsword by his legs, beginning to spin around. She then launched him forward, and he rammed into the stranger's back. The masked man dropped Aisha and they all landed roughly on the ground.

"Hey, you! The only one who can mess with her... is me!" He shouted and began attacking the stranger. The man began fighting back, dodging all of Elsword's attacks. Elsword tried everything he could, but it was like the attacker knew all of his...moves... Wait a minute. Elsword stopped fighting and instead tried for a way to rip off the mask. After Rena kicked the man in the back of the leg, Elword ripped off the mask, revealing Lowe. He gasped,

"Lowe?! What the hell man?"

Lowe chuckled softly, rubbing his head,

"H-Hey there..."

Rena's eyes widened and then she started laughing, realizing what was happening. Elsword looked at Rena, confused,

"Why are you laughing? Lowe betrayed us!"

"No, silly! Lowe tricked us. I guess this was a test to see if you'd save Aisha!"

Elsword stood there for a long moment, completely blank. He was completely baffled. He really felt dumb sometimes... He sighed and looked over to Aisha, who was just barely getting up from the ground. He sighed softly and walked towards her. He towered over her, looking down at her. She looked up slowly,

"What?"

Elsword held out his hand to her. Aisha cautiously took his hand, and he lifted her up. A bit roughly, but at least she was on her feet now. For once, he gave her a wide grin,

"I think you're one of the most flat-chested, bratty, annoying girls I've ever met!"

"Hey-"

"Wait. But we're partners okay? And I'll save you if I have to. You know, I wasn't really worried about saving you, because you're pretty strong, so I didn't think it'd ever come to that."

Aisha's cheeks turned slightly pink, she certainly wasn't used to compliments from Elsword. She was so used to seeing him as this annoying brat that she'd nearly forgotten they were the same age. He was looking kinda...

"By the way, you should comb your hair, it looks like a nest rather than hair. Learn a thing or two from Rena." He shrugged and walked off. Her positive image of him shattered and she ran after him, jumping on his back and starting to pull on his hair,

"Says the one who's house is a dump!"

Rena and Lowe chuckled watching them.

"Well, at least they got along for a few seconds." Lowe smiled and shook himself off.

"Very true. We have more important things to handle though." She smiled and walked towards the two, yelling at them forcing them to stop fighting. They returned to village, and Hagus approached them with more news.

"Everyone! We've learned from some of the villagers that Banthus was seen heading to Elder. But it seems the Ancient Phoru is attacking people. It's such a powerful beast, people could get terribly hurt. Before you make your way to Elder, please take care of the holy beast for us?"

"Wait!" The woman by the name of Ann hurried over to the group, panting from running. She stood up, a worried expression on her face, "Please don't hurt the Ancient Phoru! It's been protecting the forest for as long as I can remember! It's not his fault! I'm sure that he doesn't mean harm, but the bandits probably angered him. Now he thinks all of us are trying to harm the forest."

"I... suppose you're right, Ann. Then, can you handle that? I suppose we'll have to lock the holy beast up until he's calmed down."

"I'll go with you! I have to make sure you don't hurt him." Ann insisted.

"Well, alright." Rena smiled softly, "We'll make sure that Ann doesn't get harmed."

"Yeah!" Elsword agreed.

"Alright then, good luck!" Hagus nodded and walked away from them. Lowe stretched and looked at them,

"Can you guys handle this on your own? I should stay here and prepare for the trip to Elder. I'll pack your things for you Elsword."

"Sure!" Aisha grinned.

"See ya later Lowe!" Elsword said. The group headed back into Ruben forest. They didn't know this would be the last time they entered Ruben forest for a long time. Elsword actually avoided the monsters in the forest this time. He wanted to save his strength for the Ancient Phoru, but he also wanted to take a better look at the forest. He had a feeling he wouldn't be coming back here for a long time, and it was a little sad for him. This was where he did a lot of his training. Training with his sister, his father, and even Lowe! He sure would miss this place. But he was very pumped for what was to come. He knew he'd be able to get even stronger as they moved on to Elder. His first journey...

Ann suddenly gasped, and everyone looked at where she was pointing. The Ancient Phoru let out a large roar as it walked through the forest. It quickly took notice of the group and roared once more, charging towards them. Rena quickly grabbed Ann's hand and pulled her away from danger, while Elsword and Aisha were quick enough to move out of the way just in time to avoid the attack.

"Alright, let's take this thing down!" Elsword began charging towards the phoru when Ann gasped loudly, distracting him.

"Don't hurt him too much!"

The phoru clawed Elsword, and then tossed him away like a ragdoll. Aisha began charging up her magic, but Ann screeched, making her accidentally send her fireballs towards Elsword. Elsword screamed and quickly jumped out of the way, sighing of relief as he did. They both looked at Ann,

"We're not gonna hurt him, but we're gonna need you to calm down a bit okay?" Aisha said, her voice reassuring. Ann looked nervous and then nodded slowly. The two warriors returned to their attack on the holy beast, slowly taking him down. They were careful not to use powerful attacks. Because of this, they were on the losing side. Aisha looked at Elsword worriedly,

"What do we do? I don't want to do anything that'll hurt it badly, but at this rate, we aren't getting nowhere..."

"Yeah..." Elsword sighed softly and looked around, "We might have to just put him down..."

Ann overheard this, and she gasped. She ran towards them and shoved Elsword into Aisha, causing them both to topple over. Ann stood in front of the phoru, blocking it from Rena who was about to step in.

"Please! Don't hurt him! He's just trying to protect the forest!"

"Ann, he could really hurt someone!" Rena frowned. She really hoped it wouldn't come to this, but there was not much they could do. None of them were phoru whisperers or anything. Does that kind of person even exist? "We know he only means to protect the forest, but he's attacking good people... I know it isn't his fault but..."

"No! I won't let you hurt him!"

The holy beast became confused and angry, and lifted it's arm to claw Ann. Rena quickly pulled Ann out of the way and they fell onto the ground. The beast began attacking them more violently now, making them hurriedly try to dodge it's attacks. Elsword shook his head,

"I'm sorry Ann, we have to!"

"Nooo!" Ann screamed and ran towards the beast again, standing in front of Elsword before he could attack. She shook her head, "Don't! It's just trying to-"

Before Ann could finish her sentence, the Ancient Phoru clawed her back, sending her flying into the air and crashing onto the ground hard. Ann's small body couldn't take the impact, and her body became completely still, her eyes closed. The trio's eyes widened as they watched Ann fall to her death.

"Ann!" Elsword screamed, and enough was enough. He had to finish off the monster. Elsword used a Mega Slash, putting all of his power into it, causing the Phoru to fall, closing it's eyes as it met it's end. Rena and Aisha were kneeling next to Ann, frantically feeling for any sign of a pulse. Rena shakily held Ann's wrist, and gently set it down with dark eyes. There was nothing. Aisha shook her head sadly,

"No..."

Elsword ran over, looking down at Ann's lifeless body. He clenched his fist and lifted Ann's body from the ground gently. He felt his hands shaking, but he tried his best to continue carrying the body of his former friend. Elsword had known Ann for a long time. She was such a kind girl, even though she often wacked him with her spatula. But he deserved it, every single time. He knew that... Elsword began walking slowly, back towards Ruben, followed by his gloomy teammates.

Elsword dreaded the arrival back to the village. He could only imagine the looks on everyone's faces. Hagus would be so devastated. Ann had been such a cheerful villager, friends with everyone she met. She always tried to raise everyone's spirits. He could hardly believe she was gone... Ann was always there. Always. Now, she'd never be around. It would be so hard for everyone to get used to. Someone so lively, just...gone. Elsword gulped, biting down hard on his lip as they neared Ruben. As he entered the village, he could hear the horrified gasps and cries from the villagers that watched them pass through. He could hear someone telling Hagus to hurry, and the devastated sound that came from the Chief.

It was still early, and all of the village decided to hold Ann's funeral that night. Everyone stood near a fire as they lowered Ann's body into the ground. Many people took turns speaking words of their memories of her. A lot of them could hardly finish their speeches, they all began crying in the middle of talking. Elsword decided not to speak. His words would have been the same as everyone else. And, he didn't want to stand in front of everyone. He felt so much guilt deep inside him for the first time in his entire life. His whole body was regretting taking Ann into the forest. Putting her in danger. He thought that they could protect her. It was all an accident... It wasn't suppose to end up this way. He could barely stand. They began burying his friend. It was the first time in a long time that he lost someone so close to him. Everyone placed flowers around her grave, crying softly. After everyone had left, he placed flowers there too. His clenched fist was shaking, he really didn't want to cry but... he couldn't help it. Tears fell from his eyes anyway. He felt arms wrap around him from behind, and it only made him cry harder. They held onto him, trying their best to comfort him. He didn't even care who it was. He needed the comfort right now. He later found out that it was Aisha and neither of them said anything as they returned to where they were meant to sleep.

A day or two passed before the three were finally ready to move on.

Hagus approached them at the village gates, walking much slower than usual. Everyone was still gloomy, and they probably would be for a long time.

"In Elder, there's a man named Hoffman. Talk to him, alright?"

They all nodded, and left Ruben.

 **Review Time!**

 **Before I begin the reviews, I just wanted to ask you guys to let me know what you thought of this chapter. Specifically that dark twist. Alright here we go!**

 **LucasTheCookie** said

"Again a Great chapter :3  
50chapters is a lot, Let's Hope that u reach ur goal"

 **Thanks! It is quite a lot, I hope I can manage that!**

 **Well, that was the only review this time haha! So, leave a review and I'll respond to you here! Thanks for reading!**


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